Navigation

True Blood: Season 1 - You'll Be The Death of Me (Season finale)

Review by Jack Foley

product

IndieLondon Rating: 4 out of 5

INDIELONDON singles out notable episodes from current television series for stand-alone reviews. On this occasion we take a look at the season one finale of True Blood entitled You’ll Be The Death of Me (as aired on FX on Friday, October 2, 2009).

What’s the story? Sookie (Anna Paquin) finds a connection to the murders in Bon Temps. Jason (Ryan Kwanten) finds a new goal in life. Bill (Stephen Moyer) tempts fate, continuing to find a way to rescue Sookie from harm. Sam (Sam Trammell) is troubled by a familiar face from his past.

Was it any good? Curiously, the final episode of season 1 of True Blood suffered the occasional lapse in quality. But in the main, it remained as hugely entertaining as always, while leaving viewers with the loose ends required from a cliffhanger.

The loose ends stemmed from the resolution of the Bon Temps murder storyline and the discovery of the killer’s identity. Without giving it away to those who have yet to sink their teeth into this excellent drama, the killer’s final moments failed to ring true.

Having successfully framed Jason Stackhouse for the crimes in the previous episode, and being relatively safe in the knowledge that their identity wasn’t a concern to the local police, the killer still decided to go after one last victim… Sookie Stackhouse.

It created a hugely exciting chase scenario, as Sookie was pursued into the woods by the killer, with vampire Bill and shape-shifting Sam in hot pursuit to save her. But it didn’t really ring true.

For someone who had spent the entire season cleverly concealing their tracks, and wrong-footing even us viewers, the last act meltdown felt a little too contrived and not really in keeping with True Blood‘s generally high standards.

Nevertheless, Bill’s selfless act in entering daylight to try and save Sookie was a memorable moment, providing heart-in-the-mouth scenes for Sookie (the ever excellent Paquin) and Sam (the only one level-headed enough to know how to save Bill).

And thereafter, Jason and Sookie patched up their differences and enjoyed a nice sibling re-bonding moment, while Detective Andy Bellefleur (Chris Bauer) was forced to endure personal humiliation for having got the killer’s identity so wrong.

Just when you thought things had calmed down, however, the seeds for Season 2’s intriguing developments were cleverly sewn.

Tara (Rutina Wesley) continued to be drawn into Maryann Forrester’s (Michelle Forbes) lair, while an exchange between Sam and Maryann suggested a complicated history between the two of them.

Indeed, Sam was significantly shaken by the reunion to raid his own safe for all his money in an apparent bid to flee.

And Bellefleur had his own shock discovery with Tara and Sookie, when he drunkenly opened his car door to reveal a mystery woman’s dead body inside. The screams of shock that rang out into the night air brought the season to its close.

So, the curtain came down on the first 12 episodes of True Blood to confirm that its debut season was as impressive as reports suggested – involving, sexy (sometimes downright filthy), violent, shocking and downright essential viewing.